Caster



(N9 Model,)-

S. 0. MENDENHALL.

GASTER.

No. 314,961. Patented Mar. 3 1885.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

STEPHEN O. MENDENHALL, OF RICHMOND, INDIANA.

OASTER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 314,961, dated March31,

Application filed October 8, 1884. (No model.)

To ctZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, STEPHEN O. MENDEN HALL, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at Richmond, in the county of \Vayne and State ofIndiana, (present business address Cincinnati, Ohio,) have invented anew and useful Improvement in Casters for Furniture and other Purposes,of which the following is a specification.

This improvement relates to two floor-wheel oscillating casters in whichthe oscillating connection of the fioorwheel housing or axle is placedbeneath said axle, so as to bring it as close as possible to the floor.

The improvement consists in providing the horizontal oscillating armwith a vertical socket supplied with anti-friction movement andcontaining the spindle, which is fixed to the furniture orfurniture-plate.

The invention further relates to an improved method of forming the axle,which consists in casting the main body of gray iron around acylindrical portion of malleable or wrought iron whose ends form thefloor-wheel spindles.

The invention further consists in an improved method of forming bushingsfor glass caster wheels or rollers, in which the said bushing is madeoftubular shape, so as to be turned or spun. over to retain it in theroller.

The improvement further consists in an improved form of spindle arrangedto actin combination with a socket, such as above described, having acylindrical partoccupying said socket, a nut cast or fixed thereon, anda screw portion at its upper end for occupying a hole in thefurniture-leg or other part.

In order that my invention may be more fully understood, I will proceedto describe it with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which-Figure I is a perspective View of a stemcaster made in accordance withmy improvement. Fig. II is a vertical sectional view of the same. Fig.III is a side elevation showing the invention applied to plate-casters.Fig. III is a detail sectional view of the floor- Wheel axle. Fig. IV isa vertical sectional view of one form of glass roller employed. Fig. Vis a vertical sectional view of a modified form of plate-caster. Fi VIis a rear elevation,

showing a socket for surrounding the bottom of the furniture-leg, invertical section. Fig. VII is a sectional view of the preferred form ofglass roller and bushing, adapted for either one or two floor-wheelcasters.

1 represents the axle or housing of my improved caster, the main body ofwhich is made of gray iron cast about a cylindrical portion, 2, (shownin Fig. III,) which is made of malleable or wrought iron, so as to becapable of being riveted over the washers 3, Figs. I and III, when thefloor-rollers 4 are placed thereon. The housing or axle 1 is formedbelow with a transverse bearing for the cylindrical arm 5, formedintegrally with the vertical reversed socket 6, which is occopied by thecylindrical portion 7 of the spindle. Said spindle is provided at bottomwith a concave hearing or conical recess, in

which rests a hard ball, 8, occupying a conical seat provided in thebottom of the socket. This arrangement is such that the lower end of thespindle is kept from frictional contact with the sides of the socket, asany attempt to move it out of the axial line must be accompanied by thelifting of the piece of furniture above.

The side pressure upon the spindle at top it. is taken up by horizontalanti-friction rollers 9, placed loosely within an annular chamber, 10,in the upper portion of the socket. Said rollers are retained in placeby a cap, 11, covering said annular chamber and having its lower edge,12, turned over the chamt'ered lower edge of said chamber, as shown inFig. II. A plate-spring, 13, fixed to the side of the socket by screw orother means,14, is provided at its lower end with a stud, 15, engagingin a groove, 16, in the lower end of the spindle 7, so as to retain saidspindle within the socket. \Vhen it is desired to with draw the spindle,it is turned so as to bring the inclined notch 17 into engagement withthe stud 15. Said inclined notch, acting as a cam, forces back the stud15 and permits the withdrawal of the spindle.

Various modes are shown for fastening the spindle to the furniture. Thepreferred method for stem-casters is that shown in Figs. 1, II, and VI,in which the nut 18 is cast upon the center of the spindle, and a screw,19, cast or formed upon the upper end of the spindle for Will also serveto exclude dust from the inteoccupying the hole provided in thefurnitureleg. If desired, a rim or cup, 20, may also be provided,resting upon or cast with the nut 18, as shown in Fig. VI. When thespindle is forced up into the furniture-leg, the cup. 20 will surroundthe said leg and prevent its splitting.

In Fig.Vis shown a modified form of socket, in which the annular chamber10 is made of such small diameter as to enable it to be placed below thetop of the fioor-wheels. In this case the furniture-plate may be broughtdown much closer to the floor, and the inconvenience re sulting fromhigh casters thus obviated. In this form the cap-plate 11, serving toretain the anti-friction rollers 9 in place, may rest loosely on top ofthe chamber 10 and be held down by the fibrous packing-ring 21, whichrior of the socket. The spring-catch 13 14c 15 may be dispensed with anda stud or screw, 22, be fixed in the socket for retaining it on thespindle, as shown in Fig. V.

The glass roller employed is made with an axial opening tapering fromone side to the other, as shown in Fig. IV, or tapering from both sidestoward the middle, as shown in Fig. VII. In the former case a singlefrustoconical bushing, 23, may be employed, and when driven into placeis nxed by spinning its ends over, as shown at 24, to engage the sidesof the roller. In the preferred form, (shown in Fig.VII,) however,separate frustoconical sleeves 25, which may be made of cast metal, aredriven into the roller after a small portion of plaster-ofiparis orother filling material, 26, has been placed therein, and the tubularbushing 27 is then forced in. The bushing 27 will carry with it allsurplus of plaster-of-paris in the roller, while leaving sufficienttherein to fill the space between the ends of the sleeves 25. When inplace, the ends of the bushing 27 are turned over into the notchesformed in the sleeves 25, as shown, and the whole bushing is thus heldrigidly together within the roller.

The construction of glass rollers in this manner puts the glass under noinitial strain what ever, and the rollers may be made with very narrowtread, so that two of them maybe employed upon a caster without makingit look clumsy or rendering it too heavy.

Having thus described my invention, the following is what I claim as newtherein and desire to secure by Letters Patent:

1. In combination with two floor-wheels, their axle and a horizontal armbearing therein, a vertical socket fixed or formed on said arm, havinganti-friction rollers at top, and a spindle occupying said socket,substantially as set forth.

2. In combination with a socket supported from the floor-wheel axle orhousing and having a conical seat at the bottom, an anti friction balloccupying said seat, and a spindle having concave bearing at bottomresting 011 said anti-friction ball, substantially as shown anddescribed.

3. In combination with the floor-wheels of a caster, a wrought ormalleable iron spindle bearing in said wheels. and a cast iron axleformed about said spindle, substantially as set forth.

'4. In combination with a spindle having cylindrical portion at bottomand screw-threaded portion at top, a nut rigid upon the center of saidspindle, and having upturned cup or rim for surrounding thefurniture-leg, formed in one with said nut, substantially as set forth.

5. A glass roller having a bushing driven therein and fixed by spinningover its ends.

6. In combination with a glass roller having an axial opening, sleevesdriven into both ends of said opening, and a cylindrical bushing havingits ends spun over outside of said sleeves, substantially as set forth.

7. In a caster, in combination with an im verted pod and grooved spindleoccupying same, a plate-spring secured on the outside of the pod, andhaving a teat at the end of same, which passes through the pod andengages in the groove in the spindle, substantially as set forth.

8. In combination with a caster-socket and spindle occupying same, agroove and inclined notch 011 said spindle, and a teat or pin operatedby a spring from the outside of pod, and engaging in said groove,substantially for the purpose set forth.

STEPHEN O. MENDENHALL.

XVitnesses:

HARRY E. KNIGHT, GEO. L. \VHEELooK.

